Forced Update

So, the skiing sucks in the Pacific Northwest this year, so I haven't been out as much as I was hoping. What have I been doing, you ask? I suppose the short answer is reading. With substantial time off these days and a library card for the Seattle Public Library, this turns out to be an exceptional way for a bum like me to entertain and educate themselves for the price of free. More for myself than anything else, I'll try to recall the books I've read in the last month or so.

Poisonwood Bible

The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down

Toward the Mystery

Annapurna, A Woman's Place

The Da Vinci Code

Angels and Demons

The Audacity of Hope

Mandela - An Illustrated Autobiography

Gang Leader for a Day

Born to Run

I did make a short trip down to Eugene to visit Jake. During the visit, in addition to playing copious amounts of cards, we went to shoot bows at a couple of the bow hunting shops in town. Prior to this trip, I'd never shot a bow but was nonetheless smitten by the stealthiness and skills required to "harvest" an animal with one. After shooting a few times, it began to feel less awkward and I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to hit a small target from 20 yards. I understand this becomes much more difficult in the woods, on uneven terrain, in the presence of a wary bull elk, etc.

I ended up getting an incredible deal on a 2008 compound bow from Bow-Tech (designed and produced in Eugene), and Jake bought a new one as well. Now I'm hoping to have some free time in September to see how lucky I can get, or rather how unlucky an elk and/or deer can get.

Okay, so I have done some skiing. Since there's not much snow down lower, I've gone up higher on Mt. Hood to get some forced turns in, albeit on crustapalooza.

Illumination Rock

Yocum Ridge and Mt. Saint Helens from Illumination Saddle